1 Dead, 1 Hurt In Strip Mall Crash In Margate

A woman was killed, the driver hurt, after this car slammed into a Margate business in a strip mall on June 13, 2012. (CBS4)

MARGATE (CBSMiami) – One person was killed, another injured, when the car they were driving in crashed into a pet grooming business in a Margate strip mall Wednesday morning.

According the Margate Fire Rescue spokesman Dan Booker, an elderly man and woman slammed into “The Grooming Post” in the strip mall located at 6534 West Atlantic Boulevard.

Investigators said an elderly couple was heading to the hair salon next door when their 2003 Honda Accord slammed into the building. Margate police said the driver, 85-year-old John Costa, was pulling into a designated parking spot when the car accelerated forward and hit the building.

The 82-year-old passenger Elizabeth Costa did not survive the crash.

The driver was taken to North Broward Medical Center for observation. He did not sustain life-threatening injuries.

The pet grooming business owner said the impact was quite powerful.

“It was very scary because it was like a bomb,” exclaimed Hugo Marini.

Nobody inside the pet grooming business was hurt and all of the employees and the animals were safely evacuated outside of the building.

The cause of the traffic crash is still under investigation. Anyone that may have witnessed the crash is asked to call Traffic Homicide Investigator Erin Lyons at the Margate Police Department (954)-972-7111.